Electric Car Network: Green Motoring Moves Closer To Reality

Electric Vehicle Network: Green powercoming to an Australian city near you

The Chevrolet Volt, likely to be a Holden Volt when itarrives in Australia in 2012, will be one of the plug-inelectric vehicles able take advantage of an EV network

Electric Vehicle Network

What's the purpose of an EV network, if you can just plug your car into the wall socket at night to recharge it?

The
first generation of plug-in electric cars are limited (via their
battery technology) to driving short distances. The range of most
electric vehicles arriving in Australia in 2012 will be around 60km to
100km which is where charging infrastructure comes in, extending their
range.

It's
also interesting to note that an investment
bank like Macquarie has managed to raise such capital and is pouring
big bucks into the venture, especially considering how hard it is to
come by large amounts of cash during the current global financial
crisis.

The
deal is also being looked at by Pricewaterhouse Coopers, and the bean
counters seem to like it: "Better Place is a simple and practical
solution to the
enormous climate change challenge facing Australia. It is a wonderful
example of a low carbon transport solution that is feasible,
cost-effective and can achieve results on a scale meaningful to the
problem," commented Michael Molitor, PWC's senior adviser on carbon
management.

The
new EV network could end up being like a telecommunications network,
whereby vendors - such as Toyota, Holden, Ford and so forth - would pay
fees to Better Place so that their cars can use the Better Place
recharging stations.

Interestingly,
the Better Place corporation
has an existing partnership with Renault-Nissan which throws up the
question of preferential treatment. However Better Place claims
"The company is committed to open network access and leverages industry
standards, allowing consumers to have a choice of make and model."

Interesting times ahead, no doubt about it.

- Feann Torr, Editor

Melbourne, Australia —
In just three years time, we could be filling up or
'recharging' our silent cars at green energy hubs instead of
petrol stations.

A new consortium formed by a troika of serious investors has plans to develop an electric vehicle network in Australia.

This
new electric vehicle network would be the third such infrastructure
rollout in the world, with plans underway in the Middle East and Europe.

But
with the backing of a consortium formed by the Macquarie Capital Group,
AGL, and Better Place, Australia could be set usher in a new era of
green
motoring with an electric vehicle (EV) network powered by renewable
energy.

The
hydrogen powered car is still many decades away because of the cost
involved in both storing the volatile fuel, and also in generating
it.

However the energy source for electric cars fitted
with rechargable lithium batteries is much more widely available:
electricity.

The
three corporations that plan on being pioneers in the field
of EV networks, expected to be ready in Australia in 2012, appear
to havethe blessing of the
Victorian State Premier, John Brumby, which is a positive indication that progress can be made.

"The Victorian Government supports
any initiative that will have positive outcomes in reducing emissions
in the transport sector and welcomes this innovative approach to help
make broad adoption of EVs in Australia possible," said Mr Brumby.

The
Macquarie bank will provide the cash, around $1 billion; Better
Place will draw up the plans, provide the technology and maintain the infrastructure;
AGL will supply green electricity from sources such as wind and
solar.

The reason that AGL wants to be in on the project is to
supply green energy to car drivers, so that the electricity used to charge the vehicles
is not generating CO2, which is currently the case with 90% of the electricity
generation in Australia (which comes from burning coal).

In this way, cars running on the new EV network would be carbon neutral and AGL would receive an eco-friendly PR boost.

"Because EVs charge primarily at night, they
can maximise the potential of intermittent renewable energy such as
wind," said AGL's Jeff Dimery.

According
to
the Californian-based renewable energies corporation Better Place, this
new
EV network will allow the upcoming generation of plug-in electric
vehicles to charge rapidly with clean electricity, and is a "model for
sustainable mobility [that] will help Australia move toward oil
independence."

Better
Place's EV network is a scalable model, which has been adopted by
Denmark and Israel for use in 2011 and is being proposed for Melbourne,
and is expected to be ready in 2012.

"As the
world's sixth largest country, our network build out in Australia
will demonstrate that the Better Place model works in all countries,
regardless of size," said Shai Agassi, the CEO of Better
Place.

"We are investing in Australia's economy and adding
jobs while helping the country take a generational leap forward toward
oil independence.

"With our commitment to
build infrastructure and the Federal Government’s $500 million
Green Car Innovation Fund, there is a compelling case for automobile
manufacturers to jump in and build clean, safe, affordable electric
cars for Australasia and Southeast Asia," Agassi added.

Investment power house Macquarie Capital Group will fund the EV network to the tune of around $1 billion.

"The
Better Place business model is game changing and represents
an exciting opportunity for Australian consumers, the environment,
domestic automakers, the renewable energy sector, local industry and
workers to move to the forefront of the energy revolution," said David
Roseman, the head adviser of infrastructure and utilities at Macquarie
Capital Group.

"Electric
vehicles represent a more affordable alternative to the conventional
combustion powered vehicle. We believe the combination of a
competitively priced vehicle, being driven by cheaper and cleaner fuel
is a compelling business case," Roseman said.

The Electric Vehicle Network

Under the new plan for east coast cities in Australia, including Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, there
would be charging areas setup in car parks, shopping centres and
places frequented by drivers to recharge their vehicles.

The EV
network is being compared to a mobile phone network, where the charging
stations would be equivalent to the mobile phone towers that enable
telephony possible, and would eventually pop up across cities and their
surrounding suburbs.

According to the consortium, the charging
devices would look like parking meters and would comprise of cabling to
connect electric vehicles to the green energy grid.

Because the
first generation of electric cars will have limited cruising ranges,
this bold new EV network plan will also provide battery switching
stations on highways and outer suburbs, where drivers can instantly top
up their batteries for extended journeys.